Prevalence of Otitis Media with Effusion among Primary School Children in Sokoto, Nigeria

Introduction: Otitis media with effusion (OME) also known as secretory, serous otitis media is defined as the presence of fluid in the middle ear without signs or symptoms of acute ear infection. This condition is common enough to be called an ''occupational hazard of early childhood'' because about 90% of children have OME before school age 5 and they develop, an average of 4 episodes of OME every year. AIM/Objective: To determine the prevalence of otitis media with effusion among school children who presented to the ENT outpatient clinic in UDUTH Sokoto. Patients and Methods: This retrospective epidemiological study was conducted between January 2013 and January 2024 on pediatric patients who presented to ENT outpatient clinic of UDUTH Sokoto. The demographic data obtained was recorded in the data collection form. Tympanometric curve results were classified according to modified Jerger's classification as types A, As, B or C. Type A curve was interpreted as no middle ear effusion while type B, and type C, as predictive of middle ear effusion. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS for Windows version 25.0 software program (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Results with a p value <0.05 were considered significant. Results: The prevalence rate of otitis media wit effusion among school children in sokoto, Nigeria is 9.1%. The gender distribution was 50.1% male and 49.9% female. Of 4000 children that were presented to our clinic during the study period, 373 were diagnosed with OME (9.1%). The highest prevalence was at age five to eight years old (7.0%). More girls 191(39.4%) were diagnosed to have OME compared to boys 182(37.5%) with male to female ratio of 1.1:1. All of the 485 patients were assessed with tympanometry, 247(50.9%) ears had a type B curve while 126 (26.0%) ears had a type C and 60 (12.4%) ears had an As curve. Conclusion: When compared with previous studies, the overall prevalence of OME in this study is lower. The introduction of preventive and therapeutic measures for preventable diseases might have significantly contributed to this lower prevalence rate. And looking at the deep impact of OME on hearing and language development, the prevalence of the disease can be reduced more by interventions guided by wellplanned epidemiological studies of risk factors.